The objective of this work is define the ninety fifth percentile dust environment of passenger car and truck customers in the continental U.S.
The sources of airborne dust particulates are discussed in detail. The procedure used to define this environment uses data obtained from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), vehicular testing, and customer usage statistics.
The EPA data is used to determine naturally occurring dust levels. Emphasis is on naturally occurring or background particulates, dust storm activity, and annual number of rain days. It is used to determine the ninety fifth percentile dust environment for passenger cars and trucks in the continental U.S.
The vehicular testing was conducted at the GM Proving Grounds in Mesa, AZ, which is in Maricopa county. Using dust collecting samplers, we are able to show that vehicular generated particulates are a definable and repeatable amount.
Customer usage statistics were collected on drivers around the United States. Three different surveys were used to determine percent of kilometers driven on dirt and gravel roads as percent of total. Five categories of customers were developed; luxury car, intermediate car, vans, trucks, and small trucks.
From this information a methodology is demonstrated that predicts the quantity of airborne particulate a vehicle will encounter during 160,900 KM of operation.